Head of United Airlines says air traffic controller shortage is a major problem

United CEO Scott Kirby is the latest airline executive to speak out about what they want to see from Trump. Kirby is focused on air traffic control staffing but there are other issues as well.

Transcript

AILSA CHANG, HOST:

It has been a record-setting week for U.S. airlines, with Thanksgiving air travel climbing to its highest levels ever. And now the major airlines are looking ahead to a new presidential administration in Washington, and they are dropping some big hints about what they would like to see. The CEO of United Airlines is the latest airline executive to speak out. NPR's Joel Rose talked with him earlier today, and Joel joins us now. Hi, Joel.

JOEL ROSE, BYLINE: Hey, Ailsa.

CHANG: OK, so what are airlines in general hoping to see once Trump is back in office?

ROSE: Yeah. That depends on which airline you're talking about.

CHANG: OK.

ROSE: For United, the top priority is getting more air traffic controllers on the job. CEO Scott Kirby says there is an ongoing shortage of controllers, which is leading to delays across the country, really. But one place where you can see this clearly is at United's hub in Newark, just outside of New York City. Kirby told me the shortage of controllers for Newark's airspace has been leading to big delays.

SCOTT KIRBY: For the whole month of November, we had over half a million customers that were delayed because of air traffic control shortfalls in Newark alone. It is the biggest issue, the biggest opportunity to make air travel better for customers in the United States.

ROSE: Kirby says the delays in Newark were actually a bit better over this recent Thanksgiving holiday period, and he commends the Federal Aviation Administration for doing the best it can. But Kirby says the FAA is about 3,000 air traffic controllers short of full staffing and just desperately needs more money.

CHANG: Wow, 3,000 short - what is the FAA saying about that?

ROSE: Well, the FAA has acknowledged the problem in Newark. The agency says in a statement that it's working to address a, quote, "decadeslong" issue of staffing there. And the FAA has moved some jobs from Long Island to Philadelphia to try to improve that situation, but FAA administrator Mike Whitaker says this is not going to solve the problem overnight. Here he is speaking at a recent press conference.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

MIKE WHITAKER: We work very closely with the airlines. They've understood that there were going to be some bumps in the road. They haven't been any worse than we anticipated, and the delays are actually down year over year.

ROSE: In the bigger picture, the FAA is working to get more air traffic control trainees into the pipeline, both at its academy in Oklahoma City and at a handful of other colleges and universities, but all of that will take time to show results.

CHANG: Sure. OK. Well, what about other airlines? Like, what are they looking for in the next administration?

ROSE: Some of the other big carriers have said that they are looking forward to a more business-friendly climate. Under the current transportation secretary, Pete Buttigieg, the department has taken a more ambitious approach to regulating the airlines, passing new rules aimed at protecting consumers - for example, a rule that airlines must offer cash refunds when flights are canceled or significantly delayed. And the CEO of Delta Airlines, Ed Bastian, says the second Trump administration will be a, quote, "breath of fresh air" after what he called the government overreach of the Biden administration. And the head of Southwest Airlines has said he hopes the Department of Transportation will be a little more business-friendly and less aggressive in terms of regulating under the second Trump administration.

It is worth noting, though, that both of those airlines have faced discipline from the Department of Transportation. Southwest drew a record fine after its big winter holiday meltdown back in 2022, and Delta is also under investigation for its own problems after a major IT outage this summer.

CHANG: Right.

ROSE: So maybe not a total coincidence...

CHANG: (Laughter).

ROSE: ...That they are looking forward to this change of direction.

CHANG: Maybe not total coincidence - all right. As we said, we are just coming out of a record holiday travel week. How did it go?

ROSE: Yeah. This was the busiest Thanksgiving week for air travel ever - full stop. The TSA - the Transportation Security Administration - says more than 18 million people passed through airport checkpoints - up more than 4.5% from last year - and nearly 3.1 million on a single day on Sunday, which breaks the all-time single-day record. You know, and despite that huge volume, the system held up well. The FAA says on-time performance was great. Only 1.4% of flights were delayed. Even fewer were canceled - less than half a percent.

CHANG: Wow.

ROSE: So despite some signs of strain, the system seemed to hold up to this big holiday rush. The next test, of course, is just around the corner.

CHANG: I'm kind of impressed. That is NPR's Joel Rose. Thank you so much, Joel.

ROSE: You're welcome. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.